Everyone will tell you that setting up and running your own business is hard work – and it is, to a point. Well it’s busy and no one day is the same – like project management, but the main driver behind starting your own business has to be something you enjoy not just the money. Personally I love creating CVs for people – taking what is sometimes a list or a lengthy essay and changing it into a document which is clear and concise and most importantly; one which will attract the interest of hiring managers and recruiters.
I was asked yesterday, how can I make each CV so right for each individual and yet also make it attractive for roles – simple I responded, I find peoples USP (Unique Selling Point) and ensure I add a balance of “doing” skills and experience. Once you have worked with a number of hiring managers and really got to understand from their perspective what they expect to see in a CV the fog lifts and you instinctively know what a CV needs to look like. Of course you do need to be able to articulate yourself clearly and use professional language; and in The CV Righters’ case you also need to have a good understanding of project management and its terminology (which can be like a second language). Once you have this knowledge and these skills under your belt then all you need is passion and patience.
Understanding the perspective from the candidate also comes into play – I was working with a Project Management consultant last week who was petrified of losing content from his rather long CV. When I pointed out that we can condense the experience and still cover all bases of his career by structuring his CV in a particular way, he relaxed. Trying to secure interviews is a frustrating and scary process especially for those who are currently out of work. Little to no feedback from hiring managers and recruiters for your applications really doesn’t help. How do you know you are doing things wrong if no one actually tells you?
Speaking with another client last week who had harvested no success from agencies from her applications – she said she’d asked recruiters for feedback and the best she had managed to gain was that she needed to add more about what she’s done to her CV. The rather unhelpful recruiter also said; having had a discussion about what the candidate had actually done that she would be a great applicant to put forward to clients’ but her CV needed changing. Being a fairly recent graduate, with little experience of writing a professional CV she walked away from the conversation not much wiser.
Writing an effective CV does not come naturally to all – I started this service because I want to make a difference to those who are good, strong, candidates that could easily win the interview if they could just get through the door in the first place. Creating really meaty CVs to enable people to get noticed for the right reasons and secure interviews is what I do. I insist on taking a collaborative approach to creating the CV which means the CV never loses your mark, time is taken to really understand you and how you work.
